


One Foot In...

by Lazchan



Category: Subarashiki Kono Sekai | The World Ends With You
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2011-10-19
Updated: 2011-10-19
Packaged: 2017-10-24 19:07:46
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,031
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/266852
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lazchan/pseuds/Lazchan
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>After the door was opened, you never quite forgot what it was like on the other side.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Spoilers for the end of the Game
> 
> This is again one of my older fics-- but only a year old this time. *laughs* I think I can actually continue this one, though. Hopefully soon.
> 
> Subarashiki kono sekai does not belong to me, Square/Jupiter Games, etc. owns that.

  
He supposed it was inevitable; three weeks spent in the UG, using pins and power and running to keep your very existence going…that normal life would be almost a let-down. More of a reverse shock to the system. There was no looking over one's shoulder for an attack, no dodging from Reapers.

No Composer looking over your shoulder to see how you were doing.

Well, he couldn't say that last part with any certainty. As Mr. H had explained it, the Composer _was_ Shibuya and if Neku was there; well… it stood to reason Josh was somewhere nearby as the case went, watching him.

 _Watching everybody_ , Neku told himself firmly. _He's the freaking Composer, he's not just going to single you out just because he decided to kill you and use you for his own purposes. For all you know, he makes a habit of that._

As he sat near Wildkat, sketching carefully, he watched people as they went back, eyes sharp on the café. Would he see people suddenly appear in there? Was there a Game going on? _Why am I still thinking about it?_

He couldn't help but be drawn to the areas he had gone over so many times while he was a Player. Something kept on pulling him back, little whispers of memory in his ear. His fingers clenched around pins that were no longer a part of his daily accessories and he always watched people. He was probably the only one that could spot a Reaper without their wings and he berated himself for how he was acting.

"I just need to get over it," he muttered to himself, staring down at the sketches of thin-boned creatures of fantastic shapes, ones that he hadn't seen in the Game, but ones that he could imagine being there. Pins that could do so much more than the ones he founds, new variety…

His fingers twitched as he held onto his pencil. He was _not_ missing the Game.

He had been screwed around with the entire time he was there, not to mention how he got there in the first place and _why_ he was brought there. He should think of that instead of the Game, of the sheer ability to change things for the better, of the Music that hung in the air so thick that you could almost touch it with your fingers…

"Phones… you still out here?" Neku looked up, more than a little startled at Mr. H looming in his view, eyes showing concern. The depths of his concern was shown when he placed a drink by him, 'no charge' written on the side of the cup.

"Yeah—well… I mean, I just got in the mood for sketching out here, you know?" he gestured to the quiet bustle of the people moving in and out.

"Not watching for the Game again, are ya, kid?" Mr. H pushed his glasses up and sighed. "I don't know what Josh is thinking, having you remember and all…"

"I really have nothing to do with it," Neku jerked in shock, pencil falling from his hands and rolling towards an over-priced shoe. "Neku always _was_ a special case. It seems he just can't seem to come down from the Vibe that his soul was tuned to for so long."

"And that's not your fault how?" Neku scowled up at Joshua.

"Really, Neku—all I did was simply push you into the Game—" he ignored Neku's 'yeah, by _shooting_ me' "and your Soul was what reacted to the rest. Now…what do we have here?" Before Neku could stop him, Joshua held his sketchbook in his hands.

"Hmm…these are quite interesting, Neku-dear. Very…Imaginative."

Neku couldn't miss the emphasis that Joshua used with the word, it was how it was in the UG—Imagination was everything and something curled inside of Neku; whether it was fear or something else, he wasn't entirely certain.

Mr. H looked over as well, eyebrows raising. "Interesting…" he murmured. "Lots of potential; I see what you meant from before, Boss."

"I told you, he's perfect for it. Even has the new line up ready to go—" Joshua smiled brightly at Neku, who was staring at the both of them as if they had gone crazy, hands reaching out for his sketchbook.

"I don’t know what you're talking about, but can I have my stuff back so I can go?" he demanded.

"Just a moment, Neku—" Joshua forestalled anymore protests with his hand. "I first have a question for you."

After nothing was said for several moments, Neku snapped. "Well, out with it!"

"Patience…" Joshua leaned forward, causing Neku to flinch back. He still didn't know what to expect from Joshua some days. "It might take a moment… ah—there we go."

Neku didn't have to ask what it was that Joshua was talking about before the Music assaulted him from every corner, the vibrations humming along his bones and nerves and singing through his blood.

"Did you want to help me create Music out of this discord, Neku?"

Neku stared at him, trying to block out some of the sound, the desire to have his sketchbook back overtaken by the need to become suddenly deaf. Without realizing what he was doing, he gripped a line of Music, shifting it so that it went away from him.

"Very good," Joshua's smile curled up at the corners. "Welcome back to the UG, Neku."

"You've got to be kidding me," Neku backed away from the both of them. "Stop it now, Josh—put me back where I came from. I…I'm not playing your sick Game again."

"Who said anything about your playing a Game, Neku?" Joshua wound his hair around slender fingers, smirking at Neku. "I'm talking about bigger and better things. Things you were destined for." He sighed at Neku's look. "Honestly, Neku—you had one foot in the UG as it was."

"Then you can push that foot right back out," Neku snapped.

Mr. H had the grace to look embarrassed, at least. "Well, Phones—here's the thing…with as much involved as you were in the Game; and with the Boss being your Partner and all… it was sort of a… test."

"… a test?" Neku felt that feeling curl tighter, twisting his insides.

"Mm….one that I really don't know about until our dear little café owner owned up." Joshua looked calm about whatever this news was, though—it meant nothing to him, of course.

"You see—people have to move in and out of the city, brighten it up—change things up and make sure it doesn’t rot." Mr. H was explaining this all calmly and Neku stared at the cup instead, wondering as to what it contained and _how bad can the news be if he's giving me free coffee?_

"Yeah…that's why Josh shot me, wasn't it?" Neku hunched down, not sure he wanted to know where this was going.

"Well, that's just it, Phones—the Boss was playing his own Game—but well, the Angel's had already tagged you."

He really didn't like this.

"We already knew that we needed a new Conductor and we _were_ going to wait until Nature took its course…" this time, Mr. H glared at Joshua, who looked unrepentant, "but things got shoved up a bit."

"… what does this have to do with me again?" Neku asked.

"You are playing dumb today, aren't you, Neku-dear?" Joshua giggled as he handed the sketchbook over. "Shibuya's chosen you as the new Conductor."


	2. Chapter 2

Neku stared at Joshua with wide eyes, trying to scramble to his feet to get away from them, but he seemed frozen to the spot. "No," he said firmly, arms crossing over his chest, clutching his sketchbook protectively.

"Phones, it's kind of already a given," Hanekoma scratched the back of his neck in a nervous gesture. "Kinda sorry to spring this on you and all, but—" he shrugged. "The City really does like you, kiddo. Latched on and didn't let go after the game. S'why you got all these sketches of Noise here." He tapped the sketchbook. "Your Soul is already starting to work toward refining others."

"By creating things that'll destroy humans?" he demanded. "By helping out with this twisted game that hurts people and erases their souls while…. "

"Now, Neku—you know it's much more than that. You've improved a great deal since the time you spent in the game and so have your little friends. If it wasn't for the situations you went through, would you be as open as you are now?"

"Therapy does that, too," Neku muttered under his breath.

"But this way was so much cheaper!" Joshua practically chirped, earning another dark look from Neku.

"Yeah, but at least in therapy you don't _die_ ," Neku shot back. "What am I supposed to tell my friends, huh?" he asked. "Sorry guys, all that work we went through to come back to life and defeat the Conductor and all—guess what, I'm the new Conductor?" he scowled. "Sorry, can't see slipping that into a conversation. We're all starting to really connect, damn it. You can't take that away."

"It's not something you can really tell them, you know," Joshua agreed, voice casual, watching his ex-proxy with amusement in his eyes. "There are rules, after all and more than ever now, you do have to obey them, Neku."

"Just like you obeyed the rules?" Neku scowled up at him and Hanekoma, not amused at all by the turn of events. "Who said that I wanted to do this, Josh? No one asked me and I was doing just fine living my nice, normal _life_." He emphasized the last words; trying to make it known that he wasn't going to fall for Joshua's tricks again and to be the _Conductor_? That was absolutely insane.

Joshua gave a theatrical sigh as he tucked a strand of hair behind his ear. "While I do not oppose the decision, Neku—I wasn't the one that originally chose you. Shibuya does seem quite taken with you, after all—and you did save her." He smiled and sat down next to Neku, obviously trying to make Neku feel more at ease but it was having the opposite effect. "You've done some marvelous things for the city."

"I want to live my life, Josh," Neku started to say, then fell silent as the Music surrounded him once more and all thought ceased for the moment as he was overwhelmed. It wasn't even _bad_ in how it was overwhelming. It was like coming home after a long trip---of finding that perfect book or that one person you liked smiling at you. He took a deep breath and his body started to relax against his will. It was like the city was whispering 'it will be okay' in his mind.

"You can live your life, Neku," Joshua rolled his eyes. "We're not asking you to stop—that would take away all the good that has been done so far. Shibuya adores you and you care very much for your friends."

Hanekoma gave a slight cough. "Even the Reapers get somewhat of a normal life for awhile, Phones. After time, though—well, I can't say how you'll react, since you're pretty much off the charts of previous expectations, but some just accept their lot in life after a while and embrace it. You're gonna feel apart after awhile. The Music—the job—it does that to you."

"Will I become as inhuman as him?" Neku jerked a thumb towards Joshua, not caring if it was rude. "I don't want to turn into Shades, either." He shuddered at the memory—someone who was so devoted to the city that he trashed it in his devotion. Someone that was that scared of Joshua and that devoted to him that he'd do anything—including betting his existence—to please him.

"Well, J here might become a little more human for you," he grinned. "You've already let him know what it's like to have friends again." His grin became even wider as he looked down at the two of them. "And you don't kiss up to the boss, so I think you'll do better for J than Megumi did."

Joshua gave a prim sniff. "Megumi was a perfectly capable Conductor," he said stiffly, then smirked a little. "And worshipping is very proper, considering what I am."

"A pompous jerk?" Neku offered. "A snotty kid too full of himself?"

"I'm hardly a 'kid', Neku," Joshua said dryly. "I've been around longer than you've been alive."

"So you just take the form of a teenager for kicks?" Neku rolled his eyes. "You've got some weird habits, Josh." He was going to pretend, at least for the moment, that he hadn't been told he was going to be the Conductor of the city. Irritating Josh, having Josh bite back at him—that was normal. Well, as normal as talking to the Composer of the City could be.

"No, Neku," Joshua sighed. "My RG form is that of the age that I died, so when I downtune my Frequency, this is where it goes first. It's simply convenient to not tweak things further and besides," he said with a sly smile, "it let me connect with you easier, didn't it?"

Neku made a face. "I really don’t want to be a teenager for the rest of my life, Josh. I was planning on growing up at some point. You may want to play Peter Pan with your little band of Reapers, but vote me out."

"Really, Neku—unclog your ears a bit. This is the age I would naturally revert to, but I can up my age to an appropriate one. I can help you with that as well."

"Josh—" Neku's look turned unhappy. "I don't want to lie to my friends. I don't want to betray them."

"Your friends don't have to know a thing, Neku. In fact—they shouldn’t remember the Game at all. Memories—are tricky, especially when it comes to the UG. They fade to dreams and people fill in the gaps to logically explain something that is very extraordinary. Humans don't like the unexplainable in their lives."

"I remember—I remember everything," Neku snapped. He didn't really know about the others. He never really asked, they hadn't brought it up. He was the only one that went back to spots in the Game, who looked for Players and Reapers and tried to help people out when he could.

"Yes, Neku," Joshua said patiently. "And we already went over why you were so privileged," he patted Neku on the head. "Try to keep up, dear—can't have you going senile and forgetting such important facts already."

"So, Phones—if you told them anythin' about the Composer or the Game or anything like that, they wouldn't know or understand," Haenekoma tried to explain more gently than Joshua. "They won't be hurt, Phones."

"But…" Neku's eyes closed as he hunched over his sketchbook, biting his lip. He didn’t want to be a part of something that hurt so many people, but…' _if you're in the inside, think of how you can make it better'_

Neku wanted to swat away that internal voice, not sure if it was the city or Joshua or just his own conscience speaking to him. Not all the Reapers had been bad. The Wall Reapers for certain had been friendly, if a little odd. Just wanting food or a pin or to just get their kicks that day. He could… help people, like he had way before the Game, before the accident—

Joshua seemed to realize the shift in mood and smiled brightly. "Well, then—even if it is all but decided by the ultimate authority, Neku—we'll give you a bit of time to let this all sink in. Don’t take too long, though—my, we'll have a great deal of training to put you through."

Neku scowled and managed to stand up that time, stepping away from the two of them. "Fine—" he grumbled. "I'll 'think' about it," his voice was curt. _After I talk to the others, after I find out what they remember_. They couldn't have forgotten everything already, right? They were friends because of the Game.

"You do that, dear," Joshua stood as well, stance casual and hands in his pockets and it was so reminiscent of the way he acted during their week together that it set Neku back a moment. "I'll have one of the Reapers check in on you occasionally. I'm sure I have a few stationed near your home. They have to live too, you know," he giggled at Neku's surprised look. "It's so nice to be close to those you work with, isn't it?"

"I bet you would know all about that," Neku muttered. "If you're not getting shot at, you're getting attacked by forbidden attacks and smushed by Noise. I don't see you getting all cozy with your subordinates."

"Well, yes—but there's reasons for that," Joshua waved that away. "You are a different matter, though. You would be the one they see and talk with all the time. Tragic that we had to lose so many experienced Officers, but that's the way of things when you try and overthrow your boss." He shrugged as if he had done something as simple as giving them a pink slip rather than having their Souls extinguished.

Neku shook his head in amazement at how cold Joshua could be. "Yeah, I'll totally have to think about this," he muttered. "If it wasn’t for—" _the City, the Music, making sure you don't screw up…._ , he sighed, "Well, I'd have my reasons if I did it, Josh."

"Not just because you missed me?" Joshua teased and Hanekoma rolled his eyes.

Neku snorted. "Definitely not because of that."

"Well, dear—I will await the choice you made. I suppose I should shift you away from the UG for now. Friends and all will be awaiting you, I'm sure," Joshua gave another giggle and the Music slowly drifted away as he found himself alone on Cat Street.


End file.
